A battery receptacle system is provided to accept various types or sizes of batteries in different orientations. The battery receptacle system includes a first radial notch for positioning a first positive terminal of a first battery to electrically connect with the first positive contact at a first position, and a second radial notch for positioning a second positive terminal of a second battery of a different size and/or type than the first battery to electrically connect with the first positive contact at a second position, different from the first position. The second radial notch is configured to prevent the first positive terminal of the first battery from electrically connecting with the first positive contact at the second position.
Legal claims defining the scope of protection, as filed with the USPTO.
1. A battery receptacle system, comprising: a first dual-contact assembly including a first negative contact adjacent to and electrically isolated from a first positive contact, the first negative contact and the first positive contact being configured such that when a first battery is in a first orientation in the battery receptacle system, the first positive contact electrically connects with a first positive terminal of the first battery without the first positive terminal of the first battery electrically connecting with the first negative contact, the first dual-contact assembly including a first radial notch for positioning the first positive terminal of the first battery to electrically connect with the first positive contact at a first position; and when the first battery is in a second orientation in the battery receptacle system different from the first orientation, the first negative contact electrically connects with a first negative terminal of the first battery without the first negative terminal of the first battery electrically connecting with the first positive contact; and when a second battery of a different standard size than the first battery is in the first orientation in the battery receptacle system, the first positive contact electrically connects with a second positive terminal of the second battery without the second positive terminal of the second battery electrically connecting with the first negative contact, the first dual-contact assembly including a second radial notch for positioning the second positive terminal of the second battery to electrically connect with the first positive contact at a second position different from the first position; and when the second battery is in the second orientation in the battery receptacle system, the first negative contact electrically connects with a second negative terminal of the second battery without the second negative terminal of the second battery electrically connecting with the first positive contact, the first dual-contact assembly positioned on an opposite end of a battery relative to a second dual-contact assembly when the battery is installed in the battery receptacle system.
2. The system of claim 1 , wherein a first longitudinal axis of the first battery in the first orientation is the same as a longitudinal axis of the first battery in the second orientation; and wherein a second longitudinal axis of the second battery in the first orientation is the same as a longitudinal axis of the second battery in the second orientation.
3. The system of claim 2 , wherein the first longitudinal axis is vertically aligned with the second longitudinal axis.
4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the second radial notch is configured to prevent the first positive terminal of the first battery from electrically connecting with the first positive contact at the second position.
5. The system of claim 4 , wherein the first radial notch has a first radius and the second radial notch has a second radius smaller than the first radius, and wherein the second radial notch interrupts the first radial notch.
6. The system of claim 5 , wherein the first radius is approximately 2.75 millimeters and the second radius is approximately 1.9 millimeters.
7. The system of claim 1 , further comprising: a second dual-contact assembly including a second negative contact electrically isolated from a second positive contact, the second negative contact and the second positive contact being configured such that when the first battery is in the first orientation in the battery receptacle system, the second negative contact electrically connects with the first negative terminal of the first battery without the first negative terminal of the first battery electrically connecting with the second positive contact; and when the first battery is in the second orientation in the battery receptacle system, the second positive contact electrically connects with the first positive terminal of the first battery without the first positive terminal of the first battery electrically connecting with the second negative contact; and when the second battery is in the first orientation in the battery receptacle system, the second negative contact electrically connects with the second negative terminal of the second battery without the second negative terminal of the second battery electrically connecting with the second positive contact; and when the second battery is in the second orientation in the battery receptacle system, the second positive contact electrically connects with the second positive terminal of the second battery without the second positive terminal of the second battery electrically connecting with the second negative contact.
8. The system of claim 7 , further comprising: a moving assembly to adjust a distance between the first dual-contact assembly and the second dual-contact assembly, the first dual-contact assembly and/or the second dual-contact assembly being adjustable via the moving assembly to a first location to allow the first battery to electrically connect with the first dual-contact assembly and the second dual-contact assembly, and the first dual-contact assembly and/or the second dual-contact assembly being adjustable via the moving assembly to a second location different from the first location to allow the second battery to electrically connect with the first dual-contact assembly and the second dual-contact assembly.
9. The system of claim 1 , further comprising: a second dual-contact assembly including a second negative contact electrically isolated from a second positive contact, the second negative contact and the second positive contact being configured such that when the first battery is in the first orientation in the battery receptacle system, the second negative contact electrically connects with the first negative terminal of the first battery without the first negative terminal of the first battery electrically connecting with the second positive contact; and when the first battery is in the second orientation in the battery receptacle system, the second positive contact electrically connects with the first positive terminal of the first battery without the first positive terminal of the first battery electrically connecting with the second negative contact; and a third dual-contact assembly including a third negative contact electrically isolated from a third positive contact, the third negative contact and the third positive contact being configured such that when the second battery is in the first orientation in the battery receptacle system, the third negative contact electrically connects with the second negative terminal of the second battery without the second negative terminal of the second battery electrically connecting with the third positive contact; and when the second battery is in the second orientation in the battery receptacle system, the third positive contact electrically connects with the second positive terminal of the second battery without the second positive terminal of the second battery electrically connecting with the third negative contact; and wherein the third dual-contact assembly is configured to prevent the first positive terminal of the first battery from electrically connecting with the third positive contact.
10. The system of claim 1 , further comprising: an actuatable mechanism to longitudinally retain the second battery in electrical connection with the first positive contact or the first negative contact.
11. The system of claim 10 , wherein the actuatable mechanism includes actuatable retention arms that are spring loaded and biased to extend toward each other.
12. The system of claim 11 , wherein the actuatable retention arms are configured to retract into recesses in a housing of the battery receptacle system when the first battery is inserted in the battery receptacle system.
13. A battery receptacle system, comprising: a first dual-contact assembly comprising: a first positive contact; a first negative contact; an insulating connector positioned between the first positive contact and the first negative contact; a first radial notch for positioning a first positive terminal of a first battery to electrically connect with the first positive contact at a first position; and a second radial notch for positioning a second positive terminal of a second battery of a different standard size than the first battery to electrically connect with the first positive contact at a second position different from the first position, wherein the first radial notch has a first radius and the second radial notch has a second radius smaller than the first radius, and wherein the second radial notch interrupts the first radial notch; wherein the first positive contact is adjacent to the first negative contact such that the first positive contact and the first negative contact are on a same end of the first battery when the first battery is installed in the battery receptacle system.
14. The system of claim 13 , wherein the insulating connector forms the first radial notch and the second radial notch.
15. The system of claim 13 , further comprising: an actuatable mechanism including a resilient or compliant feature that imposes a bias on the movement of the actuatable mechanism to longitudinally retain the second battery in electrical connection with the first positive contact and/or the first negative contact, and the actuatable mechanism being configured to be retract into recesses in a housing of the battery receptacle system when the first battery is inserted in the battery receptacle system.
16. The system of claim 13 , further comprising: a second dual-contact assembly comprising: a second negative contact; a second positive contact; a third radial notch for positioning the first positive terminal of the first battery to electrically connect with the second positive contact at a third position; and a fourth radial notch for positioning the second positive terminal of the second battery to electrically connect with the second positive contact at a fourth position different from the third position.
17. The system of claim 13 , further comprising: a second dual-contact assembly comprising: a second positive contact; a second negative contact; and a third radial notch for positioning the first positive terminal of the first battery to electrically connect with the second positive contact; and a third dual-contact assembly comprising: a third positive contact; and a third negative contact; a fourth radial notch for positioning the second positive terminal of the second battery to electrically connect with the third positive contact.
18. A battery receptacle system, comprising: a first dual-contact assembly comprising: a first positive contact; a first negative contact; an insulating connector positioned between the first positive contact and the first negative contact; a first radial notch having a first radius, for positioning a first positive terminal of a first battery to electrically connect with the first positive contact at a first position; and a second radial notch having a second radius smaller than the first radius, for positioning a second positive terminal of a second battery of a different standard size than the first battery to electrically connect with the first positive contact at a second position different from the first position, wherein the second radius is smaller than the first positive terminal of the first battery; a second dual-contact assembly positioned on an opposite end of a battery relative to the first dual-contact assembly when the battery is installed in the battery receptacle system, the second dual-contact assembly comprising: a second negative contact; a second positive contact; a third radial notch having a third radius, for positioning the first positive terminal of the first battery to electrically connect with the second positive contact at a third position; and a fourth radial notch having a fourth radius smaller than the third radius, for positioning the second positive terminal of the second battery to electrically connect with the second positive contact at a fourth position different from the third position, wherein the fourth radius is smaller than the first positive terminal of the first battery so as to prevent the first positive terminal of the first battery from electrically connecting with the second positive contact at the fourth position.
19. The system of claim 18 , further comprising: a moving assembly to adjust a distance between the first dual-contact assembly and the second dual-contact assembly, the first dual-contact assembly and/or the second dual-contact assembly being adjustable via the moving assembly to a first location to allow the first battery to electrically connect with the first dual-contact assembly and the second dual-contact assembly, and the first dual-contact assembly and/or the second dual-contact assembly being adjustable via the moving assembly to a second location different from the first location to allow the second battery to electrically connect with the first dual-contact assembly and the second dual-contact assembly; and actuatable retention arms, spring loaded and biased to extend toward each other, to longitudinally retain the second battery in electrical connection with the first positive contact when the first battery is in the first orientation in the battery receptacle system or the first negative contact when the first battery is in the second orientation in the battery receptacle system, and the actuatable retention arms being configured to retract into recesses in a housing of the battery receptacle system when the first battery is in the first orientation or the second orientation in the battery receptacle system.
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March 23, 2010
February 8, 2011
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